With Dodo joining the ranks of ISPs offering pay-TV service Fetch TV, it’s worth considering your Fetch TV options. Here are the current deals from each ISP that offers it.
Fetch TV isn’t your only subscription-based TV service choice, but it’s one that has grown slowly and organically over the years. It’s still most closely associated with iiNet and its subsidiary ISPs, but they’re not your only choices when it comes to picking up a Fetch TV box and service.
The basic Fetch TV package is remarkably similar across all carriers. At entry level you get a PVR with access to digital free to air channels, an EPG — not Freeview Plus, if that really matters to you — along with a selection of subscription channels.
ISP | Plan | Installation Fee | Monthly Fee | Contract Length | Minimum Total Cost | Other Features |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Optus | Entertainment Bundle | $0.00 | $115.00 | $24.00 | $2,760.00 | Includes unlimited broadband and local/national calls |
iiNet group | iiNet TV with Fetch | $0.00 | $10.00 | $24.00 | $240.00 | Requires existing iiNet connection |
iiNet group | iiNet with Entertainment Pack Plus | $0.00 | $29.95 | $24.00 | $718.80 | Requires existing iiNet connection |
Internode | FetchTV | $0.00 | $9.95 | $24.00 | $238.80 | Requires existing Internode Connection |
Internode | FetchTV with Entertainment Plus | $0.00 | $29.95 | $24.00 | $718.80 | Requires existing Internode Connection |
Internode | FetchTV 1 Month Contract | $299.00 | $4.95 | $1.00 | $303.95 | Requires existing Internode Connection |
Internode | FetchTV 1 Month Contract with Entertainment Plus | $299.00 | $24.95 | $1.00 | $323.95 | Requires existing Internode Connection |
Internode | FetchTV 1 Month Contract (already own FetchTV) | $0.00 | $4.95 | $1.00 | $4.95 | Requires existing Internode Connection and already owned FetchTV STB |
Internode | FetchTV 1 Month with Entertainment Plus (already own FetchTV) | $0.00 | $24.95 | $1.00 | $24.95 | Requires existing Internode Connection and already owned FetchTV STB |
SlimTel | FetchBasic with STB | – | $9.95 | $24.00 | $238.80 | Site lacks many basic details |
Dodo | Fetch Lite | $69.00 | $15.00 | $24.00 | $429.00 | Requires existing Dodo connection |
Dodo | Fetch Entertainment Plus | $69.00 | $30.00 | $24.00 | $789.00 | Requires existing Dodo connection |
There’s been some consolidation in this space, as Optus doesn’t appear to offer a “basic” Fetch TV tier at all any more, with its Entertainment bundle automatically adding the 31 additional channels to each deal. Optus’ price is considerably higher than competitors, but that’s because it currently appears to only offer Fetch TV as part of a $115 bundle that includes local and national landline calls and an unlimited data broadband deal. You’ll still need an Internet connection to use Fetch TV elsewhere, but other ISPs are more open in terms of which deal you apply to Fetch.
Then again, as I found when testing Fetch TV out on Optus, it also seriously limits the Fetch TV’s streaming limits, because it don’t support streaming Fetch TV recorded programs to external devices such as tablets or smartphones, something that iiNet, for example, cites as a selling point.
iiNet offers Fetch TV at identical pricing across its iiNet, Westnet, TransACT and Adam Internet brands, but there’s some differentiation if you’re an Internode customer, especially if you already own a Fetch TV box. Slimtel are listed as a Fetch TV provider by Fetch TV, but the Slimtel website doesn’t list a lot of pricing and minimum cost details for the variety of packages they offer at the time of writing, with many links going nowhere, which isn’t an encouraging sign.
Dodo’s pricing isn’t terribly competitive, especially as it insists on both a setup fee and a delivery fee for the Fetch TV box unless you’re able to collect it yourself from Dodo.
You’ve also got the option to buy a Fetch TV box outright through Harvey Norman, Domayne or Joyce Mayne, which will cost you an outright $379 plus $5 per month for the basic service. If you were tempted by that option, it would be worthwhile checking if you can get Internode at home, because it will charge you less for the set top box outright as well as less in monthly fees on an ongoing basis.
Comments
10 responses to “Fetch TV Deals: Who Has The Most Fetching Offer?”
Optus pricing, decoupled from DSL: http://www.optuszoo.com.au/tvandvideo/optustv/pricing
iiNet also provide fetch decouples from their internet service, catch is that it is considerably more expensive.
Another poorly put together article from Lifehacker, at least they didn’t copy and paste it from someone elses website.
Why is contract length in dollars?
that’s how contract length is specified in gizmodo-land.
because time is money apparently
Creepy, I got an email from someone at internode ([email protected])
“The Fetch contract length prices are months (either 24 or 1 months).”
and it wasn’t sent to the address I have listed on my LifeHacker profile either …
I have had an iiNet fetch box for almost 24 months and there are two downsides that are minor in nature but major in impact.
The main one is no way to reorganise the order in which you move through your TV channels. I like to have my channels in a certain order (ABC, ABC2, ABC3, SBSs, 7, 9, 10, etc…) but Fetch cannot allow that. You can specify a set list of channels you want to watch (favs) but you can’t designate which order they are in. Basic $20 STBs from the Reject Shop can do this, NFI why Fetch can’t.
The second issue is the OS. It’s so horrible, slow and clunky. So slow. So clunky. But my missus can use it, so it’s almost fool proof.
“But my missus can use it, so it’s almost fool proof.”
And they say chivalry is dead.
Buying the box outright from a retailer gives you Movie Box as part of the starter pack.
The $5/$10 starter pack from carriers does not include movie box. If you don’t want the 33 channels but would like the 30 free movies each month, this is the way to go.
Plus you can get unlimited internet from TPG for $60 a month, so then $5 a month extra gets you 30 free movies plus a reliable (and really quite excellent) EPG service. $20 a month extra gives you all your subscription TV channels + on-demand TV streams.
It’s worth noting that iinet and Internode provide 2 extra channels (35 subscription channels vs 33 subscription channels) not provided when you buy the box outright from a retailer, but i’m not sure which ones they are.
Get foxtel people – all these other pay tv providers are secondary!!